Food products with yogurt whey

ABSTRACT

A food product comprising a neutralized yogurt whey.

RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation application of InternationalApplication No. PCT/US2013/042579, titled FOOD PRODUCTS WITH YOGURTWHEY, filed on May 24, 2013, which is hereby incorporated by referencein its entirety.

BACKGROUND

Separated yogurt production produces about two pounds of whey for everypound of yogurt produced. The whey by-product produced from yogurt is arelatively new by-product resulting from the recent popularity ofseparated yogurt quite often referred to as “Greek” yogurt. Traditionalyogurt production via cup set or stirred-style vat set processes doesnot produce a yogurt whey by-product stream. Additionally, yogurt wheyis unlike whey produced from cheese manufacturing. Yogurt whey containsless solids and is more acidic than whey produced from the production ofcheese. In contrast, sweet whey is manufactured during the production ofrennet types of hard cheese like cheddar or Swiss cheese and has ahigher solids content and lower acidity. Acid whey is produced duringthe production of acid types of cheese such as cottage cheese, andcontains a higher solids content than yogurt whey. Currently, yogurtwhey is used as an agricultural liquid fertilizer. This liquid yogurtwhey does not have suitable characteristics for use in processed foodsand animal feed, like other whey by-products.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure relates to a food product including a neutralizedyogurt whey. The food product can be bakery product, a beverage product,a snack product, a confectionery product, a soup product, a dry mealproduct, a cereal or a dairy product, for example.

In many embodiments, a food product includes neutralized yogurt whey.The neutralized yogurt whey has the following composition: a pH of 6.0or greater; at least 100 mg calcium per 100 grams of yogurt whey; atleast 1% wt galactose; and at least 6% wt solids.

In some embodiments, the yogurt whey in the food product has thefollowing composition: a pH of 6.2 or greater; at least 3% wt calcium;at least 5% wt galactose; at least 95% wt solids; and less than 5% wtprotein.

These and various other features and advantages will be apparent from areading of the following detailed description.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Unless otherwise indicated, all numbers expressing feature sizes,amounts, and physical properties used in the specification and claimsare to be understood as being modified in all instances by the term“about.” Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numericalparameters set forth in the foregoing specification and attached claimsare approximations that can vary depending upon the properties sought tobe obtained by those skilled in the art utilizing the teachingsdisclosed herein.

The recitation of numerical ranges by endpoints includes all numberssubsumed within that range (e.g. 1 to 5 includes 1, 1.5, 2, 2.75, 3,3.80, 4, and 5) and any range within that range.

As used in this specification and the appended claims, the singularforms “a”, “an”, and “the” encompass embodiments having pluralreferents, unless the content clearly dictates otherwise. As used inthis specification and the appended claims, the term “or” is generallyemployed in its sense including “and/or” unless the content clearlydictates otherwise.

“Include,” “including,” or like terms means encompassing but not limitedto, that is, including and not exclusive.

The term “yogurt whey” refers to the acid whey separation byproductgenerated from the traditional method of making Greek yogurt. Yogurtwhey is a dilute, acidic liquid containing carbohydrates, milk minerals,protein and cultures.

The term “neutralized yogurt whey” refers to yogurt whey that has beenneutralized with a basic material to raise the pH of the yogurt whey.

As used herein, a “food product” is a food produced by combining two ormore edible ingredients.

The present disclosure relates to a food product including a neutralizedyogurt whey. The food product can be a bakery product, a beverageproduct, a snack product, a confectionery product, a soup product, a drymeal product, or a dairy product, for example. The neutralized yogurtwhey can be provided in the food product in any useful level. In manyembodiments the neutralized yogurt whey is a free flowing solid having amoisture content of less than 5% wt or less than 3% wt. In someembodiments the neutralized yogurt whey is liquid flowing materialhaving a solids % in a range from about 20% wt to 90% wt. While thepresent disclosure is not so limited, an appreciation of various aspectsof the disclosure will be gained through a discussion of the examplesprovided below.

Acid whey or yogurt whey is generated in the food industry as aby-product of the traditional method to make Greek yogurt which involvesa whey separation process. The resulting whey by-product is a dilute,high acid liquid containing lactose and milk minerals and is referred toherein as “yogurt whey”. Greek yogurt is produced by the fermentation ofmilk with yogurt cultures. Three pounds of milk produces one pound ofGreek Yogurt and two pounds of acid or yogurt whey. Greek yogurt isseparated from yogurt whey and the Greek yogurt is then packaged intocontainers or further processed.

This disclosure describes a neutralized and dry yogurt whey concentrateor powder that can be utilized in a food product. The neutralized anddry yogurt whey concentrate or powder can be utilized as a bulkingagent, sweetening agent or a mineral fortificant (calcium andphosphorus) for food products. To accomplish this, the separated yogurtwhey is pasteurized, concentrated and neutralized with a basic material.

In some embodiments the neutralized liquid or powder concentrate productcan replace sweet whey in food products, for example. Applicant hasdiscovered no significant sensory differences between 10% w/w solutionsof dried sweet whey and the neutralized yogurt whey. In addition, thecolor of neutralized yogurt whey was more similar to sweet whey thanwhey permeate. Sweet whey and neutralized yogurt whey have similaropacity and whiteness.

Yogurt whey that is separated from Greek yogurt includes a relativelylarge number of yogurt cultures or colony forming units of yogurtcultures. The yogurt cultures used to form Greek yogurt areLactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcusthermophilus bacteria, among others. In many embodiments, yogurtcultures are present in the yogurt whey.

Yogurt whey has a pH that is more acidic than whey produced from cheese(i.e., sweet whey). The pH of yogurt whey can be less than 5.0 or lessthan 4.8 or 4.5 or less. The pH of yogurt whey can be in a range from4.0 to 5.0 or from 4.3 to 4.7 or from 4.4 to 4.6. Another way todescribe acidity is “titratable acidity” or TA which refers to a totalacidity and is expressed as %. Titratable acidity can be determined foryogurt whey by titration with a 0.1 N NaOH solution to a 8.2-8.4 pHusing phenolphthalein indicator. Yogurt whey has a TA that is greaterthan a TA of sweet whey. The TA of yogurt whey is at least about 0.2% orat least 0.3% or at least 0.4%. The TA of yogurt whey can be in a rangefrom 0.2 to 0.5% or from 0.3 to 0.5%.

Yogurt whey that has just been separated from Greek yogurt has a solidscontent of less than 10% wt or less than 8% wt or about 6% wt. Yogurtwhey can have a solids wt % in a range from 3 to 9% wt or from 4 to 8%wt or from 5 to 6% wt.

Yogurt whey has a wt % of protein that is less than whey produced fromcheese (i.e., sweet whey). Sweet whey can have about 0.8% wt protein.Yogurt whey has less than 0.5% wt or less than 0.4% wt or about 0.3% wtprotein. Yogurt whey can have a protein wt % in a range from 0.1 to 0.5%wt or from 0.2 to 0.4% wt.

Yogurt whey has more calcium than whey produced from cheese (i.e., sweetwhey). Yogurt whey has at least two times or at least three times or atleast 4 times the amount of calcium as sweet whey. Yogurt whey can haveabout 100 mg/100 g or more of calcium. Yogurt whey contains calcium in arange from 100 to 150 mg/100 g.

Yogurt whey has galactose while sweet whey typically does not containgalactose. Yogurt whey can have at least 0.4% wt galactose or at least0.5% wt galactose. Yogurt whey contains an amount of lactose that issimilar to sweet whey. Yogurt whey and sweet whey contains about 70% wtlactose on a dry basis or is in a range from 50 to 75% wt lactose on adry basis.

To be utilized in products such as food products, yogurt whey ispasteurized, concentrated and neutralized with a basic material. Theseprocessing steps can be performed in any order. For example the yogurtwhey can be first pasteurized, then concentrated and then neutralizedand optionally further dried to a powder. In other embodiments, theyogurt whey can be first neutralized, then pasteurized and thenconcentrated and optionally further dried to a powder. In someembodiments, the yogurt whey can be first concentrated, then neutralizedand then pasteurized and optionally further dried to a powder.

Neutralizing the yogurt whey is accomplished with an addition of a basicmaterial to form a neutralized yogurt whey. The neutralized yogurt wheyhas a pH that is greater than 5.0 or greater than 5.5 or greater than6.0 or greater than 6.2. In many embodiments the neutralized yogurt wheyhas a pH in a range from about 6.0 to 6.5. The basic material can be anyuseful basic material. In many embodiments the basic material is ahydroxide such as alkali metal hydroxides or alkali earth metalhydroxides. Alkali metal hydroxides include sodium and potassiumhydroxide. Alkali earth metal hydroxides include calcium and magnesiumhydroxide. In some embodiments the basic material is a carbonate such assodium bicarbonate.

Yogurt whey can be concentrated by removing water to any useful solids %or moisture content. The concentrated yogurt whey can be a liquidconcentrate or a powder concentrate depending on the amount of waterremoved from the yogurt whey. Water can be removed by any useful methodsuch as filtration or evaporation. In some embodiments water is removedby membrane separation techniques such as reverse osmosis,nanofiltration or ultrafiltration, for example. Yogurt whey concentratescan have a solids % in a range from about 20% wt to 90% wt. Yogurt wheyconcentrates can be pumped or transported in some embodiments have beenneutralized (having a pH of greater than 5.0 or greater than 5.5 orgreater than 6.0) and in other embodiments have not been neutralized(having a pH of less than 5.0).

Concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey can be dried utilizing anyuseful drying method. In many embodiments the yogurt whey can be driedwith a drum dryer, an oven dryer, a freeze dryer, or any other knowndrying equipment or process. In many embodiments the dried yogurt wheyis a yogurt whey powder having a moisture content of 5% wt or less, or3% wt or less.

In embodiments, the concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey can bedried utilizing spray drying. Surprisingly it is found that when theconcentrated and neutralized yogurt whey has a pH of about 6 or greater,the spray dried neutralized yogurt whey forms a free flowing powder.

In many embodiments, neutralized yogurt whey or powdered compositionshave a pH of 6.0 or greater, at least 2% wt calcium, at least 1% wtgalactose and at least 6% wt solids or a pH of 6.2 or greater, at least3% wt calcium, at least 5% wt galactose and less than 5% protein.

In many embodiments, yogurt whey powdered compositions have at least 2%wt calcium, at least 5% wt galactose, less than 5% wt protein and amoisture content of 5% wt or less or 3% wt or less. In many embodiments,yogurt whey powdered compositions have at least 3% wt calcium, at least5% wt galactose, less than 5% wt protein and a moisture content of 5% wtor less or 3% wt or less. Yogurt whey and sweet whey contains about 70%wt lactose on a dry basis or is in a range from 50 to 75% wt lactose ona dry basis.

The concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder canbe incorporated into a food product. The neutralized and concentratedyogurt whey or yogurt whey powder can replace all or a portion of thesweet whey in products such as food products, for example. Theconcentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder can beutilized as food product bulking agent, sweetening agent and nutrientfortificant.

The concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder canbe utilized as food product bulking agent and replace all or a portionof sweet whey that is added as a bulking agent. The concentrated andneutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder can be utilized as foodproduct bulking agent and replace all or a portion of maltodextrin thatis added as a bulking agent to food products. These food productsinclude cereals, soups, yogurts, frostings, fillings, dry cheeses or dryspice mixes, cake mixes and other baking products or meal products.

The concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder canbe utilized as a sweetening agent and replace all or a portion oftypical sweetening agents that are added to food products. Theconcentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder can beutilized as a sweetening agent and replace all or a portion of dextrosethat is added to food products such as beverage, bakery or snackproducts, for example. Other food products include cereal and cerealcoatings.

The concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder canbe utilized to replace all or a portion of milk permeate, skim milkpowder or non-fat dry milk that are added to food products.

The concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey powder canbe utilized as a nutrient fortificant. The concentrated and neutralizedyogurt whey or yogurt whey powder contains calcium at useful fortificantlevels. For example, the concentrated and neutralized yogurt whey oryogurt whey powder can contain 3% wt or greater of calcium, on a drybasis.

Food products described herein incorporate the neutralized yogurt whey.The food product can be a bakery product, a beverage product, a snackproduct, a confectionery product, a soup product, a dry meal product, acereal or a dairy product, for example. The neutralized yogurt whey canbe provided in the food product in any useful level. In many embodimentsthe neutralized yogurt whey is a free flowing solid having a moisturecontent of less than 5% wt or less than 3% wt. In some embodiments theneutralized yogurt whey is liquid flowing material having a solids % ina range from about 20% wt to 90% wt.

Examples of food products that may incorporate the neutralized yogurtwhey or yogurt whey described herein include a confectionary, aconfectionary coating, a gum, a bakery product, an ice cream, a dairyproduct, a fruit snack, a chip or crisp, an extruded snack, a tortillachip or corn chip, a popcorn, a pretzel, a nut, a snack bar, a mealreplacement, a ready meal, a soup, a pasta, a canned food, a frozenprocessed food, a dried processed food, an instant noodle, a chilledprocessed food, an oil or fat, a sauce dressing or condiment, a dip, apickled product, a seasoning, a baby food, a spread, a chip or a crispsuch as chips or crisps comprising potato, corn, rice, vegetable(including raw, pickled, cooked and dried vegetables), a fruit, a grain,a soup, a seasoning, a ready-to-eat breakfast cereal, hot cereal ordough, or an ice cream such as a frozen yogurt, a dairy products such asa yogurt or cheese or cheese powders, ready meal, a soup, a pasta, acanned food, a frozen processed food, a dried processed food, an instantnoodle, or a chilled processed food, a beverage including beverages thatinclude fiber or protein, energy drinks, or dairy beverages. Furtheruseful products for the inclusion of the neutralized yogurt whey includepet food, an animal product, and a medical food.

In embodiments, the neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey describedherein can be included in a baking product. The baking product can be inthe form of a dry mix, refrigerated or frozen dough or baked productthat is refrigerated, frozen or kept at room temperature. Exemplarybaking products include pie shells, pancake mixes and biscuit mixes anddough and baked products, sweet rolls and the like.

In embodiments, the neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey describedherein are incorporated into a nutritional supplement, a vitaminsupplement, an infant formula product, a medicinal or pharmaceuticalproduct, or the like.

In embodiments, a food product is a processed food product. Foodprocessing includes the transformation of raw ingredients into food ortransforming forms of food into other forms of food. Food processingoften includes using harvested crops or animal products to producemarketable and often long shelf-life products. Processed food productsinclude products for which additional processing by a consumer may bedesired prior to consumption. For example, a food product for whichheating, cooking, baking, or the like, may be desired by a consumerprior to consumption may be a processed food product despite not beingin its final form (e.g., being unheated, uncooked, unbaked, etc.) priorto delivery to a consumer.

Particularly suitable food products including soup, meal kits, grainproducts such as ready-to-eat cereals, snacks, bars and baked dough, anddairy products such as ice cream, yogurt and cheese. For the purposes ofthe present disclosure “grain” includes grain and pseudograin. Examplesof food grains include corn; sorghum; fonio; millet such as pearlmillet, proso millet, finger millet, foxtail millet, Japanese millet,kodo millet and the like; Job's tears; wheat; rice; rye; barley; oat;tritacle; wild rice; teff; amaranth; quinoa; buckwheat; and the like.The neutralized yogurt whey or yogurt whey described herein can also beused in connection with soup, broth, sauce (such as basting sauce),various seasoning sauces, ketchup, dressings, and other like foods.

EXAMPLES

Yogurt whey from the production of Greek yogurt was characterized andcompared to a typical sweet whey product as described in Dried DairyHandbook, WI Center for Dairy Research, Smith, Karen. The results ofthis analysis is shown in the table below.

TABLE 1 Sweet Whey Yogurt Whey 12.5% solids 5.5% solids pH 6.2 4.5 Fat %0.3 0.03 Protein % 0.8 0.11 Carbs % 4.8 3.9 Moisture % 3.8 1.6 Ash % 0.50.64 Lactose % 4.8 3.4 Galactose % 0 0.5 Ca mg/100 g 45 120 P mg/100 g45 61 Total Acidity 0.10

This yogurt whey was concentrated to about 35% wt solids in anevaporator and then pasteurized and neutralized with a 10% solution ofcalcium hydroxide (Ca(OH)₂) to pH targets of 5.5, 6.0, 6.25 and 6.5.Each of these samples were then dried to less than 3% wt moisture. Thesamples that were neutralized to a pH of 6.0, 6.25 and 6.5 were found tobe free flowing powders. It was surprising that the samples that wereneutralized to a pH of 6.0, 6.25 and 6.5 were found to be free flowingpowders while the sample neutralized to a pH of 5.5 was not a freeflowing powder.

The 6.5 pH sample (referred to as “Yogurt Whey”) was characterizedagainst typical sweet whey and typical whey permeate. The results ofthis characterization is illustrated in Table 2 below.

TABLE 2 Sweet Whey Whey Permeate Yogurt Whey pH 6.0 6.0 6.5 Fat % 1.00.10 0.26 Protein % 12 3.6 4.2 Carbs % 73 86 77 Moisture % 3.8 1.6 2.8Ash % 7.3 8.2 16 Lactose % 65 87 53 Galactose % 0 0 7.0 Ca % 0.58 0.363.5 P % 0.63 0.57 1.1

Thus, embodiments of FOOD PRODUCTS WITH YOGURT WHEY are disclosed. Theimplementations described above and other implementations are within thescope of the following claims. One skilled in the art will appreciatethat the present disclosure can be practiced with embodiments other thanthose disclosed. The disclosed embodiments are presented for purposes ofillustration and not limitation.

What is claimed is:
 1. A food product comprising a neutralized yogurtwhey.
 2. The food product according to claim 1, wherein the food productis a bakery product.
 3. The food product according to claim 1, whereinthe food product is a beverage product.
 4. The food product according toclaim 1, wherein the food product is a snack product.
 5. The foodproduct according to claim 1, wherein the food product is aconfectionery product.
 6. The food product according to claim 1, whereinthe food product is a soup product.
 7. The food product according toclaim 1, wherein the food product is dry meal product.
 8. The foodproduct according to claim 1, wherein the food product is a dairyproduct.
 9. A food product comprising yogurt whey, the yogurt wheycomprising: a pH of 6.0 or greater; at least 100 mg calcium per 100grams of yogurt whey; at least 0.5% wt galactose; and at least 10% wtsolids.
 10. The food product according to claim 9, wherein the yogurtwhey comprises: a pH of 6.2 or greater; at least 3% wt calcium; at least5% wt galactose; at least 95% wt solids; and less than 5% wt protein.11. The food product according to claim 10, wherein the food product isa bakery product.
 12. The food product according to claim 9, wherein thefood product is a beverage product.
 13. The food product according toclaim 10, wherein the food product is a snack product.
 14. The foodproduct according to claim 9, wherein the food product is aconfectionery product.
 15. The food product according to claim 9,wherein the food product is a soup product.
 16. The food productaccording to claim 10, wherein the food product is a dry meal product.17. The food product according to claim 9, wherein the food product is adairy product.
 18. The food product according to claim 10, wherein thefood product is a cereal product.
 19. The food product according toclaim 9, wherein the yogurt whey comprises yogurt cultures.
 20. The foodproduct according to claim 10, wherein the wherein the yogurt wheycomprises yogurt cultures.